White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan

The White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan are the most militant and violent chapter of the Ku Klux Klan, founded in Mississippi and Louisiana in 1964 by Grand Wizard Samuel Bowers. The secretive White Knights increased their membership to 6,000 within a year, and they had Klaverns in over half of the counties in Mississippi. The White Knights were responsible for many bombings, church burnings, beatings, and murders, killing three civil rights workers during the Freedom Summer of 1964. By 1967, its membership had shrunk to just 400, but it continued to be active into the 21st century.